&nbsp;Superior Court has divorce and court records and probate <br>records from 1872;County Recorder has birth, marriage, <br>death and land records. Some old records&nbsp;in Sonoma County<ref name="HBG">''Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America'', 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Mendocino County, California. Page 85 {{WorldCat|50140092|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FHL|1049485|item|disp=FHL Book 973 D27e 2002}}.</ref>

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=== '''&nbsp;Historical Facts''' ===

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{{Wikipedia|Mendocino County, California}}

==== Parent County ====

==== Parent County ====

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'''18 February 1850:''' Mendocino County was created as an original California county at statehood. '''County seat:''' Ukiah <ref name="Handybook">''The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America'',10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).</ref>

The two principal histories of Mendocino County are Lyman Palmer, ''History of Mendocino County, California...'' (San Francisco, Cal.: Alley, Bowen &amp; Co., 1880) and Aurelius O. Carpenter and Percy H. Millberry, ''History of Mendocino and Lake Counties, California...'' (Los Angeles, Cal.: Historic Record Co., 1914). Both cover the early history and settlement of the county and include several biographical sketches and some portraits.

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==== Maps ====

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There are two notable autobiographies of Ukiah residents. The first is by horticulturalist Carl Purdy, ''My Life and My Times'' (Naturegraph Press, 1976). Purdy (1861-1845) migrated to Ukiah in 1870 and lived there the remainder of his life. His story includes much local Ukiah valley history as he observed it. The other volume was written by Ukiah native and retired judge Lilburn Gibson, ''Some reminiscences of my seventy-four years in Mendocino County'' (1966). The judge was born in Ukiah in 1892 to a family that migrated to Mendocino County in the 1850s.

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==== Military ====

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The "wild west" character of the county is demonstrated by the Frost-Coates feud, beginning in Willits in the 1860s. This story is recounted in John Boessenecker, ''Badge and Buckshot: Lawlessness in Old California'' (Norman, Okla.: University of Oklahoma Press, 1988).

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==== Newspapers ====

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=== Land and Property ===

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==== Probate ====

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=== Maps ===

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==== Taxation ====

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=== Migration ===

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==== Vital Records ====

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=== Military History and Records ===

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== Societies and Libraries ==

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=== Naturalization and Citizenship ===

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== Web Sites ==

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=== Newspapers ===

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*USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.

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The first Mendocino County newspaper was the ''Mendocino Herald'' published by Edwin R. Budd (1818-1875) on 9 November 1860. Previous to that time the principal newspaper for the county was the ''Sonoma Democrat'', also published by Budd in Santa Rosa. His biography can be found in Lyman Palmer, ''History of Mendocino County, California...'' (San Francisco, Cal.: Alley, Bowen &amp; Co., 1880), 628-629. A summary of the early history of the press in Ukiah is found in Aurelius O. Carpenter and Percy H. Millberry, ''History of Mendocino and Lake Counties, California...'' (Los Angeles, Cal.: Historic Record Co., 1914), 72-73.

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*[http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=localitydetails&subject=206673&subject_disp=California%2C+Mendocino&columns=*,0,0 Family History Library Catalog]

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The largest collection of county newspapers is held by the '''Held-Poage Research Library''' of the [http://www.pacificsites.com/~mchs/ Mendocino County Historical Society]. The collection includes paper copies of older papers as well as the most complete microfilmed collection of county newspapers. Current newspapers are only archived for Ukiah. The library also maintains a Clipped Obituary File. Other current county newspapers are combed for vital records and then discarded. An index to obituaries and vital records from newspapers (though not complete) is available from the web site.

*Fort Bragg Branch has microfilm of the Fort Bragg Advocate (1890-1929 and 1996-present), and the Mendocino Beacon (1878-1982 and 1998-present).

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*Willits Branch has holdings of the ''Willits News'' (1892-present), as well as the ''Little Lake Herald'' (1901-1910) and the ''Covelo Review'' (1904-1907).

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[http://www.co.mendocino.ca.us/museum/ The Mendocino County Museum] in Willits has also published a number of historical works, e.g., John Keller, ''As I remember Ukiah: history, stories and memories'' (2002).

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[http://www.gracehudsonmuseum.org/ The Grace Hudson Museum and Sun House] is, in addition to the Held-Poage Library, the major repository of local history collections. Named for local artist Grace Carpenter Hudson (1865-1937), the museum is located behind her 1911 craftsman home, the Sun House. The Museum collections include not only her artwork of local subjects, but also the writings of her mother Helen McGowen Carpenter and the photographs and writings of her father Aurelius O. Carpenter, both early Mendocino County immigrants (1850s). A recent publication of the museum is Marvin A. Schenck, et al., ''Aurelius O. Carpenter: Photographer of the Mendocino Frontier'' (2006).

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==== County Courthouse ====

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==== Family History Centers ====

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*[[Introduction to LDS Family History Centers]]

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*[[Ukiah California Family History Center]]

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*[[Willits California Family History Center]]<br>

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=== Societies ===

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[http://www.pacificsites.com/~mchs/ The Mendocino County Historical Society] has published several items, one of the more ambitious projects being Bruce Levene, et al., ''Mendocino County remembered: an oral history'', 2 vols. (1976). The Society also publishes a quarterly Newsletter. The Held-Poage Research Library in Ukiah is maintained by the Society and contains the most complete collection of historical and genealogical materials relating to the county.

Neighboring Counties

Resources

Bible Records

Biography

Cemeteries

Census

Church History and Records

LDS Ward and Branch Records

Ukiah

Court Records

Crime and Criminals

Directories

Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups

Germans

Gazetteers

Genealogy

History

The two principal histories of Mendocino County are Lyman Palmer, History of Mendocino County, California... (San Francisco, Cal.: Alley, Bowen & Co., 1880) and Aurelius O. Carpenter and Percy H. Millberry, History of Mendocino and Lake Counties, California... (Los Angeles, Cal.: Historic Record Co., 1914). Both cover the early history and settlement of the county and include several biographical sketches and some portraits.

There are two notable autobiographies of Ukiah residents. The first is by horticulturalist Carl Purdy, My Life and My Times (Naturegraph Press, 1976). Purdy (1861-1845) migrated to Ukiah in 1870 and lived there the remainder of his life. His story includes much local Ukiah valley history as he observed it. The other volume was written by Ukiah native and retired judge Lilburn Gibson, Some reminiscences of my seventy-four years in Mendocino County (1966). The judge was born in Ukiah in 1892 to a family that migrated to Mendocino County in the 1850s.

The "wild west" character of the county is demonstrated by the Frost-Coates feud, beginning in Willits in the 1860s. This story is recounted in John Boessenecker, Badge and Buckshot: Lawlessness in Old California (Norman, Okla.: University of Oklahoma Press, 1988).

Land and Property

Maps

Migration

Military History and Records

Naturalization and Citizenship

Newspapers

The first Mendocino County newspaper was the Mendocino Herald published by Edwin R. Budd (1818-1875) on 9 November 1860. Previous to that time the principal newspaper for the county was the Sonoma Democrat, also published by Budd in Santa Rosa. His biography can be found in Lyman Palmer, History of Mendocino County, California... (San Francisco, Cal.: Alley, Bowen & Co., 1880), 628-629. A summary of the early history of the press in Ukiah is found in Aurelius O. Carpenter and Percy H. Millberry, History of Mendocino and Lake Counties, California... (Los Angeles, Cal.: Historic Record Co., 1914), 72-73.

The largest collection of county newspapers is held by the Held-Poage Research Library of the Mendocino County Historical Society. The collection includes paper copies of older papers as well as the most complete microfilmed collection of county newspapers. Current newspapers are only archived for Ukiah. The library also maintains a Clipped Obituary File. Other current county newspapers are combed for vital records and then discarded. An index to obituaries and vital records from newspapers (though not complete) is available from the web site.

Fort Bragg Branch has microfilm of the Fort Bragg Advocate (1890-1929 and 1996-present), and the Mendocino Beacon (1878-1982 and 1998-present).

Willits Branch has holdings of the Willits News (1892-present), as well as the Little Lake Herald (1901-1910) and the Covelo Review (1904-1907).

The Mendocino County Museum in Willits has also published a number of historical works, e.g., John Keller, As I remember Ukiah: history, stories and memories (2002).

The Grace Hudson Museum and Sun House is, in addition to the Held-Poage Library, the major repository of local history collections. Named for local artist Grace Carpenter Hudson (1865-1937), the museum is located behind her 1911 craftsman home, the Sun House. The Museum collections include not only her artwork of local subjects, but also the writings of her mother Helen McGowen Carpenter and the photographs and writings of her father Aurelius O. Carpenter, both early Mendocino County immigrants (1850s). A recent publication of the museum is Marvin A. Schenck, et al., Aurelius O. Carpenter: Photographer of the Mendocino Frontier (2006).

County Courthouse

Family History Centers

Societies

The Mendocino County Historical Society has published several items, one of the more ambitious projects being Bruce Levene, et al., Mendocino County remembered: an oral history, 2 vols. (1976). The Society also publishes a quarterly Newsletter. The Held-Poage Research Library in Ukiah is maintained by the Society and contains the most complete collection of historical and genealogical materials relating to the county.